I am 95% sure the screen runs the whole space of the filter. I will open it 100% and see tomorrow. I will then play with solvents then too.

I dont think your idea as follows... will work: "My goal is to drill near the pick-up neck so I don't need to drill a hole in the filter at all".

There is some space where fluid flows thru already without the filter catching it. Obviously the flow is not enough. The transmission appears to need a flow ratio closer to the size of the filter surface. Not a few holes in the neck. You can see the neck (black plastic from behind the valve body (which you have obviously been behind a valve body or two )

That is disappointing to hear that fluid already gets through without contacting the filter. Are you certain as it makes little sense?? Nautic indicated in his T5 auto rebuild thread that ALL fluid passes through the filter.

Solvent in the cooler hose won't work to back flush. The fluid enters the pan beneath the filter at the steel hose with a 10mm bolt retainer.

Anyhow you are sleeping/ resting now and I begin work on this project now being midday here in Melbourne Australia. Photos to follow.

That is disappointing to hear that fluid already gets through without contacting the filter. Are you certain as it makes little sense?? Nautic indicated in his T5 auto rebuild thread that ALL fluid passes through the filter.retainer.

Friends just left so I grabbed the phone camera and tried to take a pic. Sorry for the poor quality, best I can do.
If you can see the white line (plastic tie wrap) is used to show the flow area open and into to the area after the filter. So as best as I am able to understand what I see, Nautic may be incorrect.

Hard to explain,..Trying to show you... it all does not flow into the filter. The intake is not shown just the neck / mouth where it meets inside the transmission. Its open on both sides so it appears to me that some fluid is not filtered. The fluid can come into the filter from the bottom intake or from the backside of the mouth.

OK job is done. Hole was drilled in bell housing. I used a syringe with 80ml fluid twice to backflush any large pieces back into my 8mm hole then drain out.

First I went to 8mm hole then poked my skewer through then felt resistance. Pushed a little harder until something gave way......I suspect this was the filter mesh as another 200ml of fluid gushed out. I continued to push upward through the intake port of the filter and skewer was going all the way into the transmission. The skewer is about 14 inches long so I'm pretty sure the filter has been pushed aside.

Increased the hole size to 10.4mm which was perfect for my M12 x 1.75mm tap. Again used syringe to get any more pieces created by the tap but most of the pieces were running down the tap through the four ridges on the tap.

I now have M12 x 1.75mm bolt in there with a M18 crush washer capturing a rubber seal where the centre space is between bolt and crush washer.

Attachments

Cooling line entry point is only about 1.5 inches above the sump

Fitted bolt with M18 crush washer added between O ring seal and bolt

Using a syringe to add small quantities of fresh fluid to wash filings back to the newly drilled hole

Had to Dremel the large washer as there was a slope in the casing to overcome

Last edited by precopster on Sat Sep 30, 2017 11:11 pm, edited 2 times in total.